Taylor Griffin, a former aide to President George W. Bush who went on to co-found Hamilton Place Strategies, has moved back home to eastern North Carolina and on Thursday will announce a challenge to a fellow Republican, Rep. Walter Jones. Jones, a former Democrat who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, made headlines by voting for the Iraq war and then becoming one of its most vocal GOP opponents. Jones once told a conference of Ron Paul supporters: “Lyndon Johnson’s probably rotting in hell right now because of the Vietnam War, and he probably needs to move over for Dick Cheney.”

Griffin, 38, said in a phone interview that he plans to run as a “real conservative:” “California should have the most liberal Republican [House member], not eastern North Carolina. … When a few people started talking to me about this race, I said, ‘Well, I’ll go and talk to some people and see what I think about it.’ I started spending time here with grass-roots activists and civic leaders and fishermen and asking them about it, and they all told me that they’d like me to run.” His slogan: “Conservative Principles Mean Conservative Results.”

Jones represents North Carolina’s 3rd District, along the state’s northeastern coast, including Camp Lejeune and the Outer Banks. Griffin worked for Bush in the White House, on the reelection campaign and at Treasury. Hamilton Place Strategies, which began in 2010 with just Griffin and Tony Fratto, has now grown to 20 employees. Griffin sold his interest in the firm to his partners and now lives in New Bern, N.C.

Dan Ronayne is the campaign’s senior adviser. Ben Ginsberg is doing the legal work. Doug Raymond of Morehead City, N.C., is the campaign manager. Henry Raymond of Raleigh is the treasurer.

Here are excerpts from the announcement release: “Conservative Businessman Taylor Griffin Announces Campaign for Congress: East Carolina Native To Challenge Most Liberal Member of House GOP in Third District Primary”: “New Bern, North Carolina — Conservative businessman Taylor Griffin today announced his candidacy for North Carolina’s 3rd Congressional District Republican Party nomination. Griffin grew up in Eastern North Carolina, is a businessman and served on the staff of former Senator Jesse Helms, worked in the White House for George W. Bush and also at the United States Treasury Department. … ‘I was born in Raleigh and raised in Eastern North Carolina. It was here I learned to run a boat before I could drive a car. It was here I learned to troll for Spanish Mackerel off Shackleford Banks. It was here that my granddad gave me my first real gun and taught me how to shoot. But most importantly, I was raised here in Eastern North Carolina to love my faith, my family, my state and my country. And it was here I learned the conservative principles and values that made this nation great. …

“Taylor’s roots in Eastern North Carolina stretch back more than 300 years to the earliest settlers of the Albemarle Sound region. His family fought in the American Revolution and an ancestor was a representative at North Carolina’s Constitutional Conventions. His father, Shelton Griffin, has recently retired from Alliance One in Farmville after more than 30 years in the tobacco industry. His mother, Courtney Griffin, is the daughter of Colonel William Gilmore, who served in both the European and Pacific theaters during World War II. Taylor grew up in Wilson, was an Eagle Scout, and spent his summers in Morehead City before going off to college at Appalachian State University where he majored in political science. He cut his teeth in politics working on Republican campaigns in Wilson County and as a college student in Boone.”